Surgical Technology FAQs

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Frequently Asked Questions

The population is aging, and the number of surgeries required by this age group is higher than the younger population. Therefore, the demand for Surgical Technologists will increase as a result of these changes in demographics.

Surgical Technologists can advance their career by moving up a career ladder from CST I through CST IV. With more training, some technologists advance to first assistants, who help with retracting, sponging, suturing, cauterizing bleeders, and closing and treating wounds. A tech with experience can move into management, traveling or sales.

MCC's Surgical Technology program takes two years for an Associate in Applied Science degree in Surgical Technology. This degree will equip the student with the knowledge necessary to take the national certification examination for Surgical Technology.

You will maintain the sterile field and work closely with the surgeon, passing instruments and supplies, and help count sponges, needles, supplies and instruments. You might also prepare, care for and dispose of specimens taken for laboratory analysis and also assist in applying dressings.

The Surgical Technology Program at MCC is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) in cooperation with the Accreditation Review Committee on Education in Surgical Technology. Students graduating from this program are eligible to sit for the National Certification Test to become certified through the The National Board of Surgical Technologists and Surgical Assistants (NBSTSA).

The mean annual income for surgical technologists nationwide was $40,710 in 2009. Most employers provide paid vacations and sick leave, health, medical, vision, dental and life insurance, and retirement programs. Some provide tuition reimbursement and childcare benefits.

Being a surgical technologist is an exciting and interesting career. You will set up operating instruments, supplies and equipment, prepare patients for surgery, assist the surgeon during surgery and more. Technologists pass instruments and other sterile supplies to surgeons and surgical assistants.

The surgical technologist can expect to scrub on a wide variety of surgical cases, including General Surgery, OB/Gyn, Orthopedics, Cardio and Peripheral Vascular surgery, as well as all other specialties. You might operate sterilizers, lights or suction machines, and assist with diagnostic equipment. Surgical Technologists may help transfer patients to the recovery room following surgery and also clean and restock the operating room.

The majority of jobs are in hospitals. Other entities that would employ a Surgical Technologist are clinics, surgical centers, physicians’ offices and dentists who perform outpatient surgery. You may also find employment managing central supply departments in hospitals, working for an insurance company, a sterile supply service or surgical equipment firms. Other job prospects include private specialty scrubs, assistants in surgery for veterinarians, sales reps for surgical supplies and equipment companies, managers of central sterile departments and more.

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